AUSTRIA: An Austrian man had his stomach, gall bladder and pancreas removed by mistake after his doctor misdiagnosed a bad case of indigestion as cancer.
A court heard the operation on the 73-year-old man, from Deutschlandsberg in Austria, went ahead even though tests by two other doctors confirmed that the man did not have cancer and was suffering from nothing worse than heartburn.
Five doctors were charged with negligence after the operation, but all have been acquitted after the court heard that doctors were under no obligation to check when there was a conflicting diagnosis.
The court heard the patient died as a result of the surgery at Graz hospital, and it was only afterwards that doctors confirmed that the man's organs had been healthy.